Forever in a Moment
by FireLily222
Summary: Happens during Wolf Star. Claidi jumps off her captors' boat and tries to return to Argul. On the way, she meets up with Venn. Will she fall in love with him under different circumstance? First fanfic. Horrible at summaries. Rated T for safety.
1. The Escape

**Disclaimer: I do not own Wolf Star, it's characters, or anything else by Tanith Lee.**

**From the first time I read this book, I thought that this is what should have happened. **

**So, here ya go. Enjoy!! Please R&R**

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I was lying there, in my somewhat spacious cabin, curled into a ball on the lumpy mattress that was my bed. I was crying—that was happening a lot nowadays.

There wasn't really anything to do on that ship, which meant boredom. That boredom left me with a lot of time to think. Sadly, there was only one thing I could think of—Argul. Before I was captured, I never minded spending endless amounts of time thinking about him, but now, his memory brought only pain.

After spending about an hour crying over him, I ran out of tears. I was used to this considering the frequency of my bouts of depression. Once my tears had stopped completely and my breathing had calmed and returned to normal, I decided to go out on deck.

The sailors had grown used to my comings and goings and barely noticed I was there, only acknowledging me when I got in their way, and even then I was only answered with a grunt.

They no longer bothered to bind my hands. We had been sailing for about 26 days, and they knew that I wouldn't be brave enough to actually throw myself off of the boat—they were right.

I meandered around, not thinking or feeling, just existing. I made my way to the back of the boat—or the stern as the sailors call it—and leaned against the rail. It was apparently impossible not to think of Argul because as soon as my feet stopped moving my brain turned on again.

His face filled my every thought. I felt an ache somewhere in my middle, a desperate longing to be with him. It was as if my very skin yearned to be in his presence.

Once the intensity of my desperation reached its peak, I saw him dancing in front of my eyes, hovering at least 10 feet above the water. I knew it wasn't really him; it was just a transparent ghost, a shadow of his true self that my deluded mind created.

Yet, even so, this vision of him filled me with warmth that I had almost forgotten in the midst of my misery and despair.

Love.

Love was replacing loss within my heart, and with that an extraordinary thing happened; something sprang to life inside me. It was a feeling that I had only experienced once before during my brief stay in that wretched Wolf Tower, but one that I would remember for the rest of my life.

I was Argul, or at least I felt like him in almost every way. I was no longer the shy, coward that was Claidi—I was Argul. I felt his bravery, his confidence, his daring, and most of all, his longing for us to be together again.

It was in this moment that I made a decision. Now that I look back, I don't remember actually deciding anything; I just knew what I had to do.

Still oblivious to my presence, the rough sailors that I had existed with for this short period of time didn't see me climb onto the rail of the ship. As I stood there perfectly poised on the railing, I whispered something that I hoped that Argul would hear somehow.

"I'm coming, Argul."

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**So, that was the first chapter. I'm sorry it was so short. The next one's going to be longer.**

**Please please please review.**

**Flames are excepted, but I'm praying that it wasn't bad enough to warrant one.**


	2. The Creature

**Disclaimer: I do not own Wolf Star, it's characters, or anything else by Tanith Lee.**

**This chapter's a lot longer than the last one. I think it's a bit better too. **

**Please R&R.**

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I was almost positive that the shipmates didn't hear me because my words had to have been drowned out by the wind and the crashing of the waves against the ship. Still, I didn't risk standing there for too long, so, without any fear, I jumped off the deck with what seemed to be a perfect swan dive.

For one breath-taking second, I was floating in mid-air, but then I felt my body smack the surface of the water. Despite the perfection of my dive, it was still a rough and somewhat painful entry into the water. Along with that, I received yet another shock upon my entrance—the water was _cold_. It was so frigid it made my bones ache. The feeling that thousands of needles were poking me covered my entire body. I wasn't exactly prepared for this.

The shouting of the sailors high above me, however, pulled me back to reality. In an instant I forgot about the cold and swam for my life. I submerged, hoping to lose them, but I could only stay under for a few seconds before my lungs screamed for one of my frequent trips to the surface, I risked a glance back. I was not prepared for what I saw next.

Nothing.

There was nothing behind me. No ship, no sailors. Nothing. Just endless expanses of blue. They must have given up trying to pull me back onto the ship. They knew that I would never make it back to shore, so they figured why bother. It wasn't as if I had truly escaped if I didn't live long enough to return to the man that I loved, or even return to land for that matter.

I knew that they were right, knew that there wasn't any chance that I would make it anywhere worth making it to. I knew it was hopeless.

Yet, along with that understanding, I also knew that I couldn't have _not_ jumped. There was no way that I would have been able to live with myself knowing that I didn't try to reach my beloved Argul. I would have rather died in the attempt than to have lived forever with that knowledge.

Even though I had decided that I had had no other choice, I still didn't know what to do. I didn't even know which direction we had come from. But, I still had an innate sense that I had to keep moving, that I couldn't just stay there until I died.

So, with that thought in mind, I started to kick my legs while doing an absurd stroke with my arms. I was an ungainly swimmer (even though I had some proficiency as a diver). I didn't feel as though I was getting anywhere fast, but I still kept up my awkward motions.

After swimming for a considerable amount of time, my arms and legs began to ache terribly, so I decided to rest and float on my back for a while. I soon got bored with this and turned over to continue my swimming.

However, as soon as I righted myself again, I saw a dark shape making it's way through the water, gliding just beneath the surface.

I froze as fear paralyzed my entire body, making it impossible for me to move. My brain tried to formulate some way of escaping, but the only thing that I could think of was something that Argul had said during one of our conversations.

"_The creatures of the sea are strange and usually dangerous. Some are three times larger than any man and have teeth that are as long as your fingers and twice as sharp as any knife."_

Well, I could tell it wasn't any larger than I was, but I was still petrified at what its teeth might be like. As I floated, immobilized, it came ever nearer to me. When it was about four feet away, it surfaced.

It had a sleek, gray body, a nose that looked that the neck of a bottle, fins protruding from either side of its body and back, and a funny little hole on the top of its head. It also opened its mouth to reveal small, cone-shaped teeth. Relief flooded my body. These were not the razor sharp teeth expected of an animal that regularly tore flesh from bone.

It looked neither frightened nor frightening and had the air of an animal that was simply curious. Eventually, it came close enough for me to touch, and—against my better judgement—I did. It was slick and smooth with almost a quality of sliminess, but without being gross. The skin actually had the feel as if there were thousands of tiny ridges all over it. The creature surprisingly did not shy away from my touch, but allowed me to continue stroking it.

At one point during my examination of it, my hand brushed over the fin on its back. At that moment it lurched forward and started to swim. For a split second I thought that I had scared it off. But, to my relief, it came back immediately.

As it positioned itself in front of me again, it maneuvered so that its top fin was in my right hand. I didn't quite understand why it did this, but it was definitely giving off the impression of an adult trying to explain 2 + 2 = 4 to a particularly slow child.

Gingerly, still not quite sure what it wanted me to do, I grasped its fin more firmly. Again it started to swim away, and again I lost my grip. It was at that moment I realized what it was trying to do; it was trying to pull me along.

As it came back to me, I grasped its fin tightly with both hands. The next time he sped off, I did not let go. I clung to it with all my might. When I was confident that my hands wouldn't slip, I paid attention to the sensation of being pulled along by this creature.

IT WAS AMAZING!

It was the most exhilarating thing I had ever experienced. Yes, salt water was being splashed into my nose, mouth, and eyes. Yes, I was half-blinded and half-drowned, but I didn't care. This was the fastest I had ever moved in my life. I felt as if that horribly long and slow journey that I had been forced into would be reversed in a matter of hours. Soon, I would be back on shore, and I could begin searching for Argul.

But after about half and hour of being towed along, reality began to set in. There was no way, despite its almost terrifying speed, that this magnificent creature would be able to make a journey that took 26 days in only a couple of hours. Nevertheless, I clung to this animal as if my life depended on it (which it did), even though there was still only a slim chance, if any, that I would be able to return to land.

Darkness fell. My arms and fingers started cramping as I strained to hang on. I was also, starting to doze off. Every once in a while, I would feel my fingers slip as I drifted ever nearer to unconsciousness. That feeling of falling from the creature always woke me from my daze and I would renew my grip, but I knew I wouldn't be able to keep this up forever.

Sure enough, the next time I started to doze, my fingers lost their grip entirely and I fell away from the sleek-bodied animal. I wasn't completely worried because surely it would stop and come back for me like it always did.  
But it didn't. It kept swimming off into the distance, and after only a matter of seconds, it had completely disappeared from my sight.

Hopelessness, despair, pain, all the things that I had left behind me on that ship returned to me in an instant. I knew now that I had no chance. No way of returning to my dear Argul. It wouldn't matter if I died now. I couldn't be saved. I didn't even continue my feeble attempt at swimming anymore.

The water turned from blood red to an inky black as the sun set over the waves. The only part of me floating above the surface was my head. When I looked down, I could see nothing below my neck. I thought to myself "Maybe I have no body. Maybe some other, nastier creature bit it off without me realizing it. Maybe I'm just a head floating in this endless sea." I laughed out loud at my morbid humor, but almost immediately stopped. My laughter seemed overly loud in the absolute silence that surrounded me.

I started to grow numb, not just in my body, but in my soul. I stopped thinking and feeling. There was nothing left inside me. I just kept pondering what I would die of first: starvation, thirst, drowning, exhaustion, or some predator come to pick off some easy prey. These thoughts didn't scare me or sadden me; they just whiled away the time before death truly came.

Then, I saw something that I thought I would never see in this darkness that seemed to have lasted forever. Light. It wasn't the feeble, fluttering light of a candle, but a hard, still light that had the intensity of about one hundred candles. I stared at this light numbly. I had long given up the hope of being saved, so why should I believe that I would be rescued now.

As the light came towards me, I saw what was making it. I was astounded because I had never seen anything that could fly except for hot air balloons, and this definitely was not a hot air balloon. From far away it looked like a star, but from its now close proximity I could see that it was a sphere about the size of a small house that had spines and rods protruding all over it.

I could also tell that it was descending onto the water—right on top of me! I didn't really care. At least this way I wouldn't have to wait that long for death. But, it didn't (much to my mingled relief and regret) land on top of me, though it was only a few feet away. I thought that the craft was large enough to create a small tidal wave, but it didn't. In fact, it barely made a ripple in the ever-present waves. My dull amazement continued to grow as the ship opened and a platform rolled out a like a giant tongue.

Then, out from the ship and onto the platform stepped a man. I couldn't discern any of his facial features because the brilliant light coming from within through them into shadow. The only thing I could tell about him was that he was tall and rather muscular.

After a few seconds he said "Well, are you just going to stay there and float forever, or are you going to come inside?" It took me a moment to realize that what he had just spoken was supposed to make some sort of sense, but my slow wits just couldn't process it. I did, however, register _how_ he talked. His voice was bland of emotion, but I could tell that he took great care in enunciating every word perfectly, as if he had been taught since birth to speak properly. He actually almost sounded _royal_.

"Did you hear me? I asked if you wanted to come inside." I guess the second time's the charm because I actually managed to understand this. I didn't answer him, but instead tried to clamber onto the platform. I wasn't succeeding at any quick rate so he grabbed my arms and hoisted me up. He didn't seem at all bothered that I had just drenched the front of his robes, but merely turned around and strode through the opening. Again, I had to note the grace and poise with which he walked; it was almost cat-like. I stumbled after him when I realized that he had started moving.

My feet had barely crossed the threshold when I felt warm jets of air coming at me from all angles. I could feel them bringing life back into my numb limbs, and I was completely dry within a matter of minutes.

By that time my rescuer had disappeared to be replaced with one of the oddest things I'd ever seen (which really should seem normal to me by now). It was a huge worm/snake thing, with a long silver body and shiny silver hair that seemed to make up for its lack of appendages. What shocked me even more was that it talked!

"Oh good, I see you've dried off. You looked positively frozen on the deck! And you're thin as a pole too! Look at you! You need some food. But then again, what am I saying? You're asleep on your feet! Come along dear. I'll show you someplace where you can rest."

It didn't seem to be burdened with the necessity of breathing for it had not paused at all when speaking. Its voice was a calming whisper and sounded very motherly.

It was a few moments before it realized that I hadn't followed when it started to leave. It returned to me with a smile and coiled one of its strands of hair around my wrist, gently guiding me to my room.

"Now you just sleep for as long as you like. I'll put out some food for you when you wake up." And with that, it turned and—I guess the word is slithered since it didn't really walk—away.

Without thinking or feeling, I sank into the bed and fell into a deep and dreamless sleep before my head even reached the pillow.

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**So, there you have it. I'll try to get the next chapter out tomorrow.**

**Again, please review! Flames excepted.**

**'Til next time.**


	3. Interrogations and Revelations

**Disclaimer: refer to chapters one and two.  
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I awoke some time later because of a sharp pain radiating from my stomach. I was hungry! Still half-asleep, I wondered what the sailors were going to feed me today: fish, fish, or more fish. I was really getting tired of eating the same thing every day.

It wasn't until I opened my eyes and saw the shiny white walls surrounding me that the events of the past two days came flooding back to my mind. I wasn't still being held captive on the boat. I was in some strange flying craft that had saved me from the sea.

My brain was wrenched away from these thoughts by another painful pang in my stomach. I looked around as if hoping that sustenance would just materialize right in front of me. It came as quite a shock when my eyes reached the bedside table and found a plate piled high with food resting on top of it. I was so hungry I didn't question what I was eating, even when it came to consuming the slimy, green, plant-like stuff that smelled faintly of the sea I had just left. All of it was delicious.

When my hunger was sated, I sat on the edge of the bed, wondering what to do next. I thought that it would be rude to just go wondering through someone's house, but after waiting for a considerable amount of time, I rose to go look for my host.

I was so exhausted when I first arrived that I didn't take any notice of my surroundings—I did so now. **I know that my description of it isn't really like how Tanith Lee described it, but this is just how I always saw it. **The walls were such a bright shade of white that they almost seemed to glow; they were also slightly curved and I wondered why that was until I remembered the shape of the craft from the outside. From the few exposed areas I could tell that the floor was also white, but those areas were rare due to the abundance of carpets and rugs. The majority of the—well, I'm going to call it a house—was all one big open space, although a living room and dining area were clearly distinguishable. A small two-person—I can't imagine why it would need to be two-person because surely the snake-thing didn't need to eat—table marked where he ate. I couldn't see a kitchen anywhere so I had no idea where the food even came from. The living room was comprised of two chairs and a couch, all made of what appeared to be white leather, that were roughly arranged in a circle around a long coffee table; there were also bookshelves lining the back wall. There wasn't any need for lamps because--as I didscovered later-- the walls actually did glow and provided the whole house with enough light. Down a hallway that led off of the main room were other rooms, including mine. I assumed that two of them were his room and a bathroom, but I couldn't guess what the other ones were for.

After taking stock of my surroundings, I resumed my search for my host. It didn't take me long to locate him. I found him in the living room sitting in a chair with his back towards me reading a book. It didn't look as if he had noticed me. Suddenly, I felt nervous and shy and was now very reluctant to disturb him.  
I had just decided to try to tiptoe quietly back to my room when he said, "Good evening. You have been asleep for a good 20 hours. I was beginning to wonder if you'd slipped into a coma." I had no idea what a "coma" was, but I didn't care. I was mesmerized by his voice. It sounded somehow familiar, but I couldn't quite figure out why.  
"Well, at any rate you are awake now. I trust you have been fed, yes?" I just continued to stare dumbly at him. I hated that this kept happening to me. Why had I all of a sudden become incapable of speech? A hundred questions flooded my brain, and one bubbled to my lips.

"Who are you?" This seemed to be the most important question to ask. He seemed to know that this would be the first question I would ask and answered without hesitation, "Prince Venaryonillarkaslemidorus, but that is much too long for everyday use. Just call me Venn."  
What shocked me even more than his absurdly long name was the word preceding it. _PRINCE! He's a PRINCE!_ I really had no idea why this shocked me so. I mean, Nemian was a prince. Plus, this would explain the perfect, lordly voice in which he spoke.

My shock dissipated quickly, however, and before he could say anything else I blurted out another question.

"What is that snake-thing?"

"Her name is Yinyay and she controls everything to do with the ship from its flight path to the preparation of my meals," he responded.

Yet another question.

"Why did you save me?" I asked this one more quietly; partially because I was afraid of his answer. "_Oh, I'm just putting up with you until I can sell you as a slave. You'll make me a nice profit too."_

He sat there thinking for a moment, but answered before I really had time to worry. Luckily, what he said was nothing like what my wild imagination had concocted.

"Was I mistaken? Were you not in need of rescue? Were you not about to die out there?"

"Well, yes, but…" I stuttered.

"So what is the problem?" he asked.

"I'm just wondering why you cared, why you bothered?" I clarified

"Wouldn't you have done the same thing were you in my position?"

I didn't answer. Of course I would have. I would have done it just because it was the right thing to do. _But that's different_ argued some little part of my brain. _I'm no one important. He on the other hand should be above such things._ But then again, Argul was the leader of his tribe, and he would do everything he could to save a person in need. Why couldn't I apply the same logic to the Prince as I could with Argul?

"There you have it," he replied after a few seconds of silence knowing that I had reached the same conclusion he had. For the moment, I had run out of questions. I knew that there were so many more, but I couldn't think of them. Taking advantage of my silence, the Prince now started to interrogate me.

"Now you know who _I_ am, but I still don't know who _you_ are. What's your name?"

"Claidissa Star, but please don't call me that. It may be my name, but it doesn't belong to me; that is not who I am. I am and always will be Claidi," Silence followed this statement..

"What is it?" I asked suspiciously. He didn't think that I saw the flash of recognition in his eyes, but I did. It was brief, and he quickly covered it up, but that didn't change the fact that it had been there. He knew me. He didn't answer my question, but merely shifted uncomfortably in his chair, not meeting my eyes. I pressed him further.  
"Do you know me?" Still no answer. "Tell me!" I was shouting by now and had risen from the chair that I didn't even remember sitting in in the first place.  
He didn't seem at all bothered by the fact that I was screaming in his face, but grudgingly said, "I had been notified of your imminent arrival; although, I think they said your name was 'Claidis' instead of 'Claidissa' but it's close enough." My brain was still having trouble processing big words and complex thoughts so I had no idea of what he had just said.  
"In plain English, please," I said irritably, although no longer yelling.

"I had been told you were coming," he simplified.

This I understood perfectly. He knew I was coming, which meant he knew what was happening. Everyone knew what was going on with my life but me and I was sick of it!

"You knew where they were taking me?" My voice was now dangerously low and for the first time he seemed truly frightened of me.

"Taking you? You make it sound as though you were being held captive. I realize that you have to spend a considerable amount of time on a boat to get to the island, but if you didn't like boats, then you shouldn't have demanded to go. Even you, thick as you seem to be, would have asked how you were going to get there."

Now I was really angry. My voice turned into a loud roar.

"WHAT! YOU THOUGHT I WANTED TO GO…WHEREVER IT IS THEY WERE TAKING ME! YOU THOUGHT I WANTED TO LEAVE MY HOME AND MY FAMILY AND MY FIANCEE TO SPEND A MONTH ON A STUPID SHIP ON AN ENDLESS SEA GOING GOD KNOWS WHERE! YOU THOUGHT THAT IT WAS MY WISH TO LEAVE EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE I LOVE BEHIND! DO YOU!"

I never thought that I could ever be this angry, this enraged. I wanted to choke the life out of the Prince simply because he was sitting there with completely the wrong idea. Surely, he must have just been misinformed, but I didn't care. I wanted to kill something and he was the only living thing in sight.

He just sat there, terrified, listening to my screeching, looking as though he would like nothing better than to melt into the white leather chair that he was now pressing himself harder into. Beneath this look of fear, however, I saw that he was also incredulous, as though he thought I had no clue what I was talking about and that I was blowing it way out of proportion.

"DON'T YOU LOOK AT ME LIKE I'M CRAZY!" I said this even though I knew that at the moment I probably did look insane.

"Maybe if you read the letter you would understand why I'm having such a hard time believing you," he said.

"What letter?" I snapped, though not as loud as before.

"Hold on. Let me get it. It's in the study." He jumped up out of his chair and ran from the room.

I waited there for what felt like eternity, though it couldn't have been more than 2 minutes. He came back with a piece of heavy white parchment in his hands—he still had that look on his face as if he thought I were making everything up, as if I were lying.

**This is the same letter from the book. I did not think of this myself, nor did I intend this to be copyright infringement. Tanith Lee wrote this entire letter.**

TO PRINCE VENARION YLLAR KASLEM-IDOROS:

WE TRUST YOU ARE IN GOOD HEALTH AND PLEASANTLY OCCUPIED AMID YOUR LUXURIOUS JUNGLES.

IT HAS BECOME NECESSARY THAT WE ASK YOUR ASSISTANCE. WE MUST ACCORDINGLY INSTRUCT YOU TO ACCEPT, INTO YOUR PALACE, A YOUNG WOMAN OF THE TOWERS. YOU WILL KNOW HER AS THE LADY CLAIDIS STAR.

IT IS OUR SAD DUTY TO WARN YOU THAT SHE IS AN IMMATURE AND EXCITABLE CREATURE, GIVEN TO RAGES, TANTRUMS, AND SHALL WE SAY, TO_ INVENTING_ QUITE CONVINCING STORIES OF HER OWN LIFE. (SHE MAY EVEN DENY HER OWN NAME.)

WE ARE AWARE THIS IS NOT THE MOST SUITABLE GUEST FOR YOU TO RECEIVE, WHEN, IN ANY CASE, YOU ARE MORE AT EASE WITH THE MECHANICALS AND TOYS OF YOU PALACE. UNFORTUNATELY WE MUST INSIST. THIS CLAIDIS STAR HAS CAUSED QUARRELS AND UPSETS IN SEVERAL PLACES, WITHIN THE CITY AND OUTSIDE IT. HER DEMANDS TO VISIT THE RISE, WHICH SHE DECLARES NEEDFUL FOR HER EDUCATION, CAN NO LONGER BE IGNORED.

OUR GRATITUDE TO YOU, PRINCE VENARION, WE HOPE WILL OFFSET, TO SOME EXTENT, THIS DISRUPTION TO YOUR PERSONAL ROUTINES.

WE REMAIN GREATLY IN YOUR DEBT –

WE

The letter fell from my numb fingers, and I sank back into the chair I had just vacated. Beneath all the shock of finding out where I was going and whom I was going to, I felt something else stir within me. I was furious. But then again, it went so much more beyond fury. It was the blind hatred that makes a person feel capable of murder—and I was. I knew in my heart that if I had been in that tower right then, for there was no doubt in my mind that the people of the Wolf Tower had written this, I would have killed everyone in sight. I would have taken my revenge.  
In some still rational corner of my mind I was shocked; usually I favored the "run away" approach rather than the "stand and fight" approach. Nevertheless, I loved this feeling. As anger pulsed through my veins, through every fiber in my body, I felt a new wave of life course through me. I was focused and had a purpose. I would make them pay if it was the last thing I did.

I let anger stew and build inside me, for this was the type of anger that could only be truly appreciated if one was left to think about it for a while. As I started to formulate my plans, I realized that it was folly to think that I would actually return to Wolf Tower—I was still too much of a coward. Nevertheless, I would make sure that they would not succeed. If I found Argul, that would mean that they failed. If I found Argul, I would win and I would be free of them forever. Again, some part of me knew that they would never give up, but I let myself hope—hope that they would leave me in peace with my husband and family if I could ever find them.

As I came out of my reverie, I noticed the Prince staring at me, still cautious as if anything he said would set me off again.

"So. You think I'm making this up? That I'm—what was it—" I picked up the letter to consult it. "—oh yeah, 'given to rages, tantrums, and inventing quite convincing stories of my own life'?" I asked, my voice deceptively calm, not betraying any of my true emotions.

"Well… you see…it's just that...I haven't heard anything that would change my mind as of yet." He cringed as he said this, thinking that I would start yelling again.

"I guess it doesn't really matter. Once I'm back on solid ground again, you'll be rid of me, and you won't have to put up with my 'lies' anymore," I replied.

At this point I stalked off, not wanting to stare into his disbelieving face anymore.

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**Hope you liked it! **

**If you have any ideas as what I should do next, please tell me. I know what the next chapter is going to be like, but it's mostly fluff and doesn't exactly make the story go anywhere.**

**Please review!**


	4. Doubt

**Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf Star, it's characters, or blah blah blah yadda yadda yadda. I'm getting really tired of doing this for every chapter.**

**Here ya go.**

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Venn's POV

"Only two more days until we reach land and my new life. It's just incredible Yinyay." I didn't know what I was going to do when we got to wherever it was we were going, but I didn't care. I had finally worked up the courage to leave my mother's palace behind me forever. Ever since she left there hadn't been any reason for me to stay except my own inability to abandon everything I had ever known. However, I knew that the time had come, that I couldn't just sit around and watch my life pass me by. I intended to never revisit or even think about The Rise ever again. It would be as if it never existed.

"Oh yes. It is quite exciting isn't it?" said Yinyay in her motherly voice. It was amazing how, despite her snake-like appearance, she was incredibly human.

Then, after a second's pause she said concernedly, "Venn, I see something—or someone rather—in the water. She's just floating there all alone. Poor thing. I wonder how long she's been out there. There isn't land for miles; she'll never make it anywhere. Venn, we should help her."

I tried to hide my revulsion to this idea. I hadn't had contact with any human except for my mother and her robots, which were amazingly life-like but nevertheless excruciatingly un-human. The only way that I was able to learn about people was by reading about them in the extensive library at the palace, and I had come to the conclusion that reading about someone was the only way to get to truly know them. If there was one thing I'd learned from all those stories in all those books was that people were liars and could not be trusted. The thought of meeting someone in person made a chill run down my spine. I knew that once we reached land eventually I was going to have to meet people, but not here, not now, not so soon.

Still trying to mask my horror I replied, "Are you sure that's absolutely necessary? I mean, maybe someone else will pick her up. Or maybe she knows something that we don't and is really supposed to be there."

For someone—or something—that wasn't my mother, she could make me feel guilty as only a mother could. "Are you that cold-hearted? Were you raised by animals? You are willing to let that girl die? For shame. I thought that you were more decent than that. And even if she does want or need to be down there, it still wouldn't hurt to ask."

"All right. All right," I snapped. "I suppose we can go check to see if she needs help. But only if she is in desperate need of it will she set foot on this ship."

Immediately, I could feel us losing altitude. She was determined to help this girl. It was probably those mothering instincts programmed into her that made her have such a desire to save this stranger.

In the matter of about one minute, I felt the ship gently touch the water. We had landed. Yinyay was already opening the door and rolling out a platform. I sighed. I desperately wanted to stay in the ship and not have to talk to or see this girl. Yinyay and I obviously had different desires because she was nudging me out of my chair and towards the doorway with her many strands of hair. I paused on the threshold for a moment, steeling myself, and then, with all the will I possessed, I made my way to the end of the platform.

I couldn't see any of her body, but I had to admit that her face was stunning. Perfectly arched brows were set over the most beautiful brown eyes I had ever thought possible. With sharp cheekbones and a pointed chin, her face looked naturally defiant.

Nevertheless, her beauty didn't dim my loathing of human contact and my longing to have nothing to do with her. Still, it wasn't her fault that the only person to happen upon her didn't particularly enjoy company, so I did my best to keep my voice clear of any emotion.

I thought that she was just going to climb onto the platform immediately. I wasn't expecting her to wait for me to say something. After waiting for a few seconds I said, "Well, are you just going to stay there and float forever or are you going to come inside?"

She stared up at me with a vacant expression, and I hoped that she spoke my language. If not, this could be a bit difficult. I tried again.

"Did you hear me? I asked if you wanted to come inside." This she seemed to understand because she immediately tried to scramble onto the deck. I knew that she wouldn't be able to pull herself up, so, dreading the physical contact, I grabbed her arms and hoisted her upward. While doing this, she managed to soak the front of my robes. I struggled to keep my composure. I hadn't planned on getting wet. Even so, I didn't think it prudent to blow up at her for something so minor as splashing me. I figured that it would be best if I just went inside, so I turned around and stalked off. For a brief moment, I had to fight down laughter as I listened to her slipping and sliding on the polished platform.

As she was drying off under the heat jets, I took this opportunity to look at the rest of her body. It was as luscious as her face. Her slender form was accentuated with curvy hips and a full bosom. Her now dry, and slightly wavy, hair cascaded down past her shoulders to rest down the middle of her back. Maybe she wouldn't be so bad.

I yanked myself away from this train of thought and brought myself back to reality. I hated human contact of any kind, and she was no exception. I raced off to my room, hoping to forestall that inevitable time when I would have to actually talk to her. I could hear Yinyay fussing over her in the foyer, but I couldn't make out anything she was saying.

All of the "excitement" had made me surprisingly exhausted, so without further thought I sank onto my bed and fell into an uneasy sleep.

I awoke at my usual hour at about two hours after sunrise. Last night's event had been completely forgotten. I strode rather bleary-eyed out to the living room wondering what Yinyay would make for breakfast; I was a lousy cook, as I had recently discovered, and was extremely grateful for Yinyay who always cooked my meals to perfection. I had just sat down at the table when I heard someone moan quietly. I went to go investigate the sound, as I still had no memory of the discovery of the previous night.

It didn't take me long to find her—it was a rather small craft—and as soon as I did it all came flooding back to me. This was that girl that we had found all alone in the open ocean. She looked exquisite even in her sleep. I was hoping that I hadn't woken her, and sure enough, the only recognition she gave me was to moan again and roll over.

I crept as noiselessly as I could out of her room and into the study. At intervals I came out for breakfast and lunch, but she still didn't wake. It wasn't until sometime after dinner that I saw her again.

I think that she was under the impression that I didn't know she was there, but despite how quiet she was trying to be I could still hear her breathing and footsteps. I could almost hear her debating with herself as to whether she should talk to me or not. I hated the idea of talking to her, but I figured it would happen eventually, so I might as well get it over with.

"Good evening. You have been asleep for a good 20 hours. I was beginning to wonder if you'd slipped into a coma. Well, at any rate you are awake now. I trust you have been fed, yes?" She just stood there staring at me. Maybe she had suffered a head injury and had a concussion, or maybe she was a mute. But then, she spoke and that allayed my concerns.

"Who are you?" she asked. Her voice was as alluring as the rest of her. I was surprised and grateful that I was able to keep my head when listening to it. I figured that this would be her first question so I answered without really thinking. "Prince Venaryonillarkaslemidorus, but that is much too long for everyday use. Just call me Venn." I saw a look of extreme shock cross her face. I wonder which was more startling: my extremely long name, or the fact that I was a prince. I could hardly call myself a prince, though. I didn't rule over anything. I only inherited my title from my mother, who apparently was a princess of some strange place called The City; I had never been there though.

Another one of her questions interrupted my train of thought. "What is that snake-thing?" This was another query that I was prepared for. "Her name is Yinyay and she controls everything to do with the ship from its flight path to the preparation of my meals." A second of pause. "Why did you save me?" she asked in a timid voice.

I was caught wholly off-guard by this. I couldn't believe she would ask something like that. I knew that it would be a bad idea to tell her the truth—that Yinyay wanted to save her and had she not forced me into it, I would have let her drown—so I decided to play the part of the concerned stranger that just wanted to help.

"Was I mistaken? Were you not in need of rescue? Were you not about to die out there?"

"Well, yes, but…" she stammered.

"So what is the problem?" I was getting a little annoyed with this converstaion now.

"I'm just wondering why you cared, why you bothered?"

"Wouldn't you have done the same thing were you in my position?"

Apparently, I said the right thing because she didn't have a response to that and I got a reprieve from her interrogations.

"There you have it." I felt smug that I had stumped her.

I felt that it was my turn to ask the questions now. In the back of mind I wondered why I even bothered to ask questions, why I almost wanted to talk to this girl. "Now you know who _I_ am, but I still don't know who _you_ are. What's your name?"

"Claidissa Star, but please don't call me that. It may be my name, but it doesn't belong to me; that is not who I am. I am and always will be Claidi."

A chill ran down my spin. I knew that name. This was the girl that The Towers were going to send over to me. The troublesome girl that they couldn't wait to get rid of. Here, sitting across from me, was the reason for my departure from The Rise.

"What is it?" she asked. I knew that she had seen the look of horror on my face. I tried to hide it, to put my mask back in place, but it was too late. She had seen it and she knew that something wasn't right.

"Do you know me?" I didn't want to answer, tried to shrug it off. "Tell me!" By now she had risen from her chair and was shouting in my face. I refused to let this girl upset or anger me. I answered as calmly as I could.

"I had been notified of your imminent arrival; although, I think they said your name was "Claidis" instead of "Claidissa" but it's close enough." My voice came out in somewhat of a growl, but it was the best I could do. Now, I took some notice of her expression. Confusion, horror, and rage played across her features.

"You knew where they were taking me?" Her voice was filled such with venom and suppressed anger that, despite its now quiet volume, I was now somewhat frightened of her.

I was nervous when I answered, "Taking you? You make it sound as though you were being held captive. I realize that you have to spend a considerable amount of time on a boat to get to the island, but if you didn't like boats, then you shouldn't have demanded to go. Even you, thick as you seem to be, would have asked how you were going to get there." Okay, so maybe insulting her wasn't a very good idea, but still, I was taken aback by her almost violent response.

"WHAT! YOU THOUGHT I WANTED TO GO…WHEREVER IT WAS THEY WERE TAKING ME! YOU THOUGHT I WANTED TO LEAVE MY HOME AND MY FAMILY AND MY FIANCEÉ TO SPEND A MONTH ON A STUPID SHIP ON AN ENDLESS SEA GOING GOD KNOWS WHERE! YOU THOUGHT THAT IT WAS MY WISH TO LEAVE EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE I LOVE BEHIND! DO YOU!"

I was stunned. I had absolutely no idea how to respond to this. I just couldn't understand why she was so upset. If she hadn't wanted to go then she shouldn't have demanded to go. It was simple as that. Still, her obvious incredulity and displeasure had planted a seed of doubt. Maybe the letter had lied. Then again, that letter was the reason I didn't believe her in the first place. I was so confused and wished with all my heart that I had never met her.

"DON'T YOU LOOK AT ME LIKE I'M CRAZY!" she shouted. This statement was actually almost amusing because, with hair still mussed from sleep and her face contorted with rage, she did look insane. Despite this, I was far from laughing or even smiling. I thought perhaps if I showed her the letter she would calm down, or at least understand my side of things.

"Maybe if you read the letter you would understand why I'm having such a hard time believing you," I said in what I hoped was a soothing tone.

"What letter?" She sounded slightly less angry and more curious when she said this. I jumped at this opportunity to calm her down.

"Hold on. Let me get it. It's in the study." I bolted from the room as fast as I could.

When I reached the study, I rifled through the drawers as fast as I could. My hands were shaking so hard that I dropped every paper I picked up before I could get a fix on what was written on it. When I had succeeded in strewing the contents of the desk onto the floor, I dropped on my hands and knees and continued my search that way. This proved to be a better method because I no longer had to hold anything. After a few seconds, I spied the distinct, slanty writing that indicated that I had found the right document. I snatched up the paper and, after slipping on the scattered papers and stubbing my toe on a chair leg, ran out the study.

She was perched on the edge of her chair, her back ridged as a board, when I returned to the main room. I handed the letter to her as quickly as I could. I knew that the evidence against her was written there and I wondered how she would react to it. As her eyes flitted back and forth over the document, her grip on the paper tightened, threatening to tear it to shreds. That couldn't be a good sign. After what could only have been 30 seconds, her eyes stopped moving and the letter slipped from her fingers. She just sat there, saying nothing. I waited anxiously for the outburst, but it never came. Her mouth spread into an evil and bitter grin, the kind of grin that you see on a murderer just before he makes the kill. It was one of the most terrifying expressions I had ever seen.

The room seemed to sing with tension; although, that could have just been my exaggerated perceptions at work because now she seemed almost calm, peaceful. As she came out of her private reverie, she remembered my presence and turned to look me straight in the eye.

"So. You think I'm making this up? That I'm—what was it—" she picked up the letter and scanned through it, "—oh yeah, 'given to rages, tantrums, and inventing quite convincing stories of my own life'?" Her voice was quiet, but I could sense her seething inside. I didn't want to answer, didn't want to set her off again. I was trying to find a way to tell her the truth without provoking her. I stuttered, saying the first thing that came to mind.

"Well… you see…it's just that...I haven't heard anything that would change my mind as of yet."

"I guess it doesn't really matter. Once I'm back on solid ground again, you'll be rid of me, and you won't have to put up with my 'lies' anymore," she spat.

Before I could say anything else, and probably make matters worse, she got up and left the room.

I sat there motionless for quite some time, shock preventing me from moving. I didn't know what to think about her. I found it incredibly hard to believe that she was that good of an actress. The outrage she expressed over my disbelief was too genuine. Still, my philosophy that people lied and were not to be trusted was firmly rooted in my head. Then again, if that was the case, why did I believe the people who wrote the letter so readily? Maybe they were the liars, not her. It was all just too confusing. I wished that there was some proof that one of them was telling the truth, some way to know indefinitely if she was a liar or not.

Still, she was right: it didn't really matter after all. Once we reached land, she'd leave, and I wouldn't have to worry about her ever again.

After I had resigned myself to the fact that there was just no way to know for sure, I stood up, my legs tingling after sitting down for so long, and made my way to my bedroom. Not even bothering to remove any of my clothes, I dropped onto the bed, suddenly exhausted, and went to sleep.

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**I know that this was just the last chapter from Venn's POV, but I felt like I didn't stick close enough to his character in the last chapter. I was hoping that this show that he is still the same person bascially.**

**Hope you liked it! **

**Please review! **


	5. Bliss and a Bath

**I'm gonna try to keep it in Claidi's POV from now on, but I'm not making any promises. Whenever I write something about Claidi I think, "Hmmm. I wonder what Venn is thinking," so I have to write about it. Anyway, I hope you like it.**

**Oh yeah. I do not own Wolf Star, it's characters or yadda yadda yadda, you get the drift.**

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**Claidi's POV**

I had no clue what to do next. I was still quietly seething, still plotting my revenge—something that would probably never come to fruition. But moreover, I was just bored. I missed the Hulta with a fierce ache. With them, there was always something to do or someone to talk to or laugh with. I highly doubted that Venn would want to talk to me again—not that I wanted to talk to him anymore in the first place. And no matter how life-like Yinyay seemed to be, she was just unnatural. Plus, I doubted if she was a very good conversationalist. I would probably get used to her over time, but at the moment, she just made me uncomfortable.

Not knowing what else to do, I lied down on the bed and just thought. I was surprised that after weeks and weeks of nothing to do but think that I had anything left to think about. This was partly true because it wasn't anything new that I was thinking about. It seemed impossible that I would ever get tired of thinking of Argul. As I visualized every minute detail of his features, I drifted off to sleep.

When I next awoke, I felt disgusting. My teeth felt as if they were coated in slime. My skin and hair were still covered in salt. I desperately longed for a bath. Seeing as how I didn't complete my inspection of the house, I decided to go in search of a bathroom.

It didn't take me long--there weren't that many places to look. However, actually figuring out where anything was or how anything worked was beyond me. I saw a huge basin, which I assumed was for bathing, but I could not find a faucet from which water usually spouted. I also couldn't locate anything that looked remotely like a cleaning product: no soap or shampoo, nothing. The room was almost completely barren. I wondered if Yinyay could provide me with direction as to how to operate the bath and provide me with soap.

Right on cue, Yinyay slithered into the room with her usually air of motherliness. "I should have figured you'd want to bathe. How thoughtless of me! I didn't even consider putting anything out!" She pushed a small section of the wall, which, upon applying pressure, swung open to reveal an assortment of cleansing materials. There was lavender, a variety of oils and soaps, and even rose petals that I could scatter over the water. "Here you are dear. I hope that will be sufficient." Seeing as how I had been a slave the majority of my life, the simple idea of cleanliness was a luxury that I had just newly discovered. "This will be more than enough," I assured her. "Thank you." If she had shoulders she would probably have shrugged them. "It's nothing dear. I just want to make sure you're comfortable." She was about to exit the room when I remembered something. "Wait!" I called after her. I still had no clue how to operate the bathtub. "Could you show me how to fill the tub? I can't seem to find a faucet."

"Oh, my! There must be dirt in my gears! I can't seem to think at all clearly today!" She made her way over to the basin and flipped a switch that, had she not shown me I never would have found—it blended in with the rest of the wall. Immediately, water started to gush from small jets that made a ring along the inside of the tub.

"Now, flip this switch," she pointed to one of the knobs on the wall, "when you want to turn off the water. This one," she pointed to another knob, "turns on the jets. They'll blow bubbles into your back and hopefully soothe those aching muscles. Is there anything else you need?" I went through a mental checklist. "Would it be too much trouble to get a towel?" She simply laughed at this. "Of course not, dear! What a silly question! The towels are in the cupboard over there by the sink." Again, she pointed to a cabinet that fused almost seamlessly with the wall. I decided to open it now, that way I would remember where it was; I doubted that I would have been able to find it again otherwise. "Well, I'll leave you to it then," she said and with that slithered from the room.

By then, the tub was filled almost to the point of overflowing. I quickly flipped the tiny switch, and suddenly, the room was silent—the water still, no longer churning. I peeled off my clothes, which were still stiff with salt water. I saw faint wisps of steam coming off the water and timidly dipped a toe in. It was perfect, deliciously warm. Before I got in, I decided to indulge in all the wonderful oils. I even scattered some rose petals across the water. Having added copious amounts to almost every product in the cabinet, I didn't hesitate to slide my aching, sticky body into the liquid.

The first thoughts to come to my mind were of bliss. Pure, utter bliss. I hadn't felt this level of peace and comfort in I couldn't remember how long. It must have been ages if it had ever happened at all. I could feel the layers of dirt and grime just disintegrate off my skin. All the tension in my muscles melted away. I was purely content. One of the best things about it was, for once in my life, I thought of nothing. There was no sadness, or pain, or anger—just nothing, nothing but serenity. I could sense that Argul was still there, underneath the nothingness, but he didn't disturb it. If anything, he added to the sensation, radiating calm.

A sudden lurching of the ship sent my mind speeding back to my surroundings. I'm still not entirely sure if I was asleep or not; I may have just been in a daze of unbeing. This irritated me. I was enjoying the emptiness. I didn't want to have to remember my current situation so soon. Slightly fuming, I dragged myself out of the tub, reaching for the towel as I did so, and proceeded to dry myself off.

It was at that point that I realized that I had forgotten to mention clothes. Being so exquisitely clean, I balked at the idea of putting my rancid old clothes back on. Without any other option, I wrapped the towel firmly around myself and stalked out of the bathroom.

I was completely unprepared for the sight that awaited me.

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**DUN DUN DUN! CLIFFY!**

**I'm sorry that was so short and that it ended in a cliffhanger. It's mainly just filler to appease the masses while I think of what should happen next. If anyone has any ideas I would love to hear them because I'm stuck right now.**

**Thanks for reading. Please review!**


	6. Pursuit

**I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to update. I haven't had any inspiration and I didn't know where I wanted the story to go. Plus, I was busy with school and swimming ( I was on the swim team). But now that the season is over I should have time to update more often.**

**Here you go!**

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Green. After seeing nothing but blue and white for so long, the relative darkness that accompanied that color made me feel blind. The opaque, white walls had turned translucent and crystal clear. It was because of this that I could see the expanse of trees surrounding us.

We had landed in a little clearing in what appeared to be a very dense forest. How we managed to find a large enough space in the chaos, I had no idea. The branches and leaves of the trees seemed to be moving of their own accord; a closer inspection revealed that millions of tiny insects and the occasional rodent were the cause of this.

I found Venn looking very intently at a large sheet of paper spread out on a table. I wasn't as nervous to approach him this time.

"What happened?" I asked.

He glanced somewhat contemptuously at me

"We landed," he said shortly.

"Yes, I gathered that much," I replied with just as much venom.

"Then why did you ask?"

Now that I think about it, it was a rather dumb thing to say. I ignored his question and asked another. "Where are we?"

"In a forest."

He wasn't being very helpful and didn't seem to want to talk to me.

"Is there any particular reason we landed in the middle of a bunch of trees?"

"Safety."

His short answers were starting to annoy me. I wanted him to talk to me, to tell me what was going on. Clearly that wasn't going to happen. So, I went in search of Yinyay. She was fiddling with some of the machinery that was concealed in the wall.

"Yinyay, can you tell me what is going on?"

"I'm sorry dear, but not right now. This is very delicate work and I need to concentrate."

Feeling snubbed, I went back to the living room, plopped down on a couch, and just stared at the room. I could see Venn from where I was sitting. I was sure that my close proximity irked him just as I was sure that he wouldn't mention it. After a while, he straightened from his bent position over the parchment, walked into the living, and sat down in one of chairs next to the couch I occupied.

"Forgive me for being short with you, but I had to figure something out, and I couldn't very well do it with you breathing down my neck."

I tried to make my face blank. Although I was annoyed by his inattention toward me, I desperately wanted to know what was going on.

After a brief moment of silence, he realized I wasn't going to respond and proceeded as if there hadn't just been an awkward staring contest between us.

"Yinyay detected something. Something bad. She thinks that it has been tracking us since we picked you up. Until now, it has stayed far enough away that we didn't think it much of a threat, but ever since we reached land, it has been catching up to us. There is no denying now that we are its target. I asked Yinyay to search for a place that we could hide and she suggested this forest. It's an ideal place. The trees provide ample cover from discovery from the air and I have a feeling that no one in there right mind would try to get at us from the ground."

"Do you have any idea what it is…or who for that matter?" I asked quietly. I knew exactly who it was, but I was still clinging to the hope that maybe they would give up and leave me alone.

"Umm…no. We're pretty sure that it's a hot air balloon, but we can't tell how many people are manning it or who they are." He waited for me to respond, but I couldn't seem to get my voice to work. "Claidi?" The concern in his voice was probably warranted if my face reflected any of what I was going through my mind.

It was never going to end. The letter was bad enough, but at least that was in the past, there was nothing I could do about it. This was much, much worse. They were actively seeking me, hunting me. They were going to find me and when they did…my mind literally refused to envision that scenario. I couldn't force myself to return to the present. My world was imploding; my mind was caving in on itself. I knew that I was overreacting, but there is only so much that a person can endure before that person can't take it anymore. I could feel my grip on reality slipping. As my vision darkened, I slumped sideways on the sofa. On the edge of my awareness I could hear my name being called but I was out before I could even try to answer.

**Venn's POV  
AN: Sorry. I tried. I just couldn't not do this. You need to know what he's thinking.**

"Claidi! CLAIDI!" I shouted. It was no use. What did I say? I admit that we were in a bit of a predicament, but even so. It certainly wasn't anything to be extremely worried about. The ship was well protected and hours of leisure time at the Rise had allowed me to practice hand-to-hand combat, archery, and precision with a firearm. Why did she react like that?

I was rather at a loss as to what to do with her. Should I try to wake her up or should I just leave her alone. She was lying on the couch at a somewhat awkward and uncomfortable angle and I thought that I should at least reposition her. The thought of touching her, however, horrified me. Despite that, I did actually manage to arrange her in a more traditional position on the couch.

After my task was done I sat back on my heels and just looked at her. She seemed completely different when asleep. All the harshness and wariness was stripped from her face. She no longer seemed like an adult who had experienced life long enough to be able to deal with it. Instead her face portrayed the innocent, young girl that she really was; a girl who had seen way more than a girl her age should see. She was a child who was completely overwhelmed and terrified of what her life had proved to be so far. She seemed wearier from life than any other youth should be. Instead of being able to play and have fun, she was forced to flee from forces that she didn't fully understand. All these things were made very plain on her unguarded features.

My heart filled with pity for this girl. She seemed so fragile, so delicate, and I suddenly had the urge to embrace her. I wanted to shelter her, protect her from whatever it is that she was running from. I wanted to be with her, to never leave her side. I wanted to save her.

These feelings were strange and new to me. I had never cared about another human being with this much intensity before (with the exception of my mother, but she doesn't really count; every little boy cares for his mother right?) They were quite terrifying, yet at the same time exhilarating. I had never felt so happy. I knew exactly what I wanted and knew what to do to ensure that I got it. Before she left, my mother spoke briefly to me of love.  
_"Love is irrational. It can be the greatest joy and the deepest pain. It can make your life whole and worth living or it can break your heart. One day, whether you like it or not, you will fall in love, and most likely it will cloud all logic and reason. It will change you forever. Just remember that when it does happen, trust your heart. It will lead you in the right direction."_  
I wasn't sure if it was really love or just a strong sense of sympathy, but either way, in that moment I knew that I was irrevocably attached to that girl. Whatever happened or wherever she went, I would be there to protect and guide her.

I reached out to touch her cheek, but just as my fingertips brushed her skin, she started to stir. I quickly withdrew my hand—hoping that she didn't feel that brief contact—stood up, and walked over to the kitchen table. I didn't want her to think that I had just been her staring at her the whole time she had been unconscious—even though I had.  
She moaned and rolled over. I didn't look up—I just stared resolutely at the table. She sat up, turned, and looked over the back of the couch at me.

**Claidi's POV**

The darkness was clearing, my mind pulling me back to reality. I thought I felt something touch my cheek, but I couldn't be sure. Even though I was fully awake, I still didn't open my eyes. I didn't want to face the look he would give me, that expression that just screamed superiority, that look that said he thought me weak. But I decided that I had to get up, get it over with. So, I mustered all the courage I could, sat up, turned around, and looked him straight in the eye.

After another uncomfortable staring contest, he finally broke the silence. (I need to work on that. I can't just stare at someone until they start talking. I should take it upon myself to initiate conversation.)

"Are you okay? You had me worried there for a second," he said. That startled me. He was worried about me? Him? The man who had made it no secret that he didn't exactly desire my presence on this ship? At least I had the sense to answer him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. A bit embarrassed, but otherwise okay." A pause. "So how long was I out?" I asked.

"Oh, just a few minutes," he replied. He then proceeded to ask his own question. It was a legitimate question, one that almost everyone in the universe would ask in that situation, but that didn't mean that I wanted to answer it."Why? Why did you faint? What happened?"

"Oh…well…you see…it's like this. Oh, never mind. It's stupid. You wouldn't understand." That's what I said to try and put him off the subject. Sadly, he wouldn't let it go.

"Try me." He said this with a surprising amount of gentleness. In fact I was so affected by it that I actually tried to explain it to him.

"Oh, fine. Well, it's just…it's just too much. You don't know these people. And yes, I'm almost positive that I know who we're dealing with." I answered his unasked question. "They're the people of Wolf Tower in The City and they have been hunting me ever since I destroyed the horrible Law that ruled them." He opened his mouth to speak, but I interrupted him. "Please don't interrupt. It's hard enough talking about this without having to start and stop every few minutes." He didn't say anything; he simply nodded and motioned for me to continue. "Thank you. Anyway, they were the ones that were sending me to you and now they're after me again. It'll never stop; they'll never stop. I'm going to be running from them for the rest of my life. That's not what I want. I just want to get back to my fiancée. I just want to live with the Hulta and raise a family with the one I love. Is that too much to ask? Why do they have to try and take away everything that I want—everything I love? There comes a point where all the things that they are trying to do to me becomes too much. It just got overwhelming. That's why I passed out. I just want it to be over."  
I didn't even realize it, but I had gotten up and started walking. In fact, by the time I had finished my little speech, I was sitting in the chair next to Venn—a little bit closer than he usually allowed me to be.

After I asked him not to interrupt me, he simply sat there and listened to me. The look he gave me was so odd. It was as if he was seeing me for the first time, like he actually wanted to hear and cared about what I had to say.

He waited a few seconds just to be sure I was done, and then he said, "I'm so sorry, Claidi. I'm sorry for what they've done to you. I'm sorry for what they're still doing to you. I want to apologize for my behavior toward you thus far. It was inexcusable. I just want to assure you that from now on I'm going to behave in a manner appropriate for a young gentleman. I will help you find your family and I will do my best to protect you on the way."

There was a shocked silence. I just could not force any words from my lips. How did this happen? One minute he despises me, and the next he's apologizing and saying he wants to help me. Gratitude choked my throat and all I could do was nod. He returned my nod with a smile. It was at that point that I decided to change the subject.

"So, what's the plan?" I asked.

"Well, we're going to stay here for a little while. The ship sustained a slight bit of damage during the landing. It's pretty sturdy, but we basically had to break through the canopy and create our own clearing. It's only a few dents, easily fixed. Plus, we need to keep an eye out for our followers. There's a chance that they don't know where we went, and if they don't, then all we need to do is hang out here and wait for them to pass us."

The plan made sense, but I wasn't exactly comfortable with idea of just waiting around for them to find us. I wanted to run, run far away.

"So we can't just outrun them?" I was desperate.  
"I'm afraid not. This ship was built for comfort, not speed." I could hear the apology in his voice as he said this. There was also a hint of impatience. He didn't like waiting anymore than I did. "I'm going to go talk to Yinyay; see if she's had any sign of them." He walked off to some other part of the ship, leaving alone in the kitchen to think.

Something had happened when I fainted. He saw something in me that changed his mind, something that made him decide to help me. But it was more than that. He hated me and then all of a sudden he liked me. It was almost as if he was my friend. My friend. That was what had happened. He had become my friend.

I had been subconsciously steeling myself to go through this journey by myself, to find my family on my own. It filled me with such relief when I realized that I would have someone to do this with. Maybe there was chance at happiness for me after all.

**So there you go. I know that not a lot happened, but I'm hoping to make this a launching point and now I'll be able to move the story along. Don't worry, there's more to come.**

**Haha. I just realized that according to the last chapter, this whole Venn/Claidi conversation thing happened with her wearing nothing but a towel. I don't want to have to rewrite anything, so let's just pretend that she went and found some clean clothes in her room before going into the living room. Ok? Ok. Sorry about that!**

**Hope you liked it!**

**Please review.**

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	7. The Forest

**Sorry it's taken me so long to put up new chapters. School. Family. Stuff going on. I hope you understand. **

**Well, here it is.**

**Please R&R**

**P.S. I don't own anything of Tanith Lee's. Not the book or the characters or the plot or anything.**

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Venn returned to me in a few short minutes. He had a troubled look on his face. Something wasn't right. He tried to smile, tried to cover it up, but I could see through it.

"Things are a bit worse than we had originally estimated. For some reason, we can't get the ship to fly. It doesn't add up. We only sustained minor shell damage; the motor should still work, but it just won't start. We still have power and water, and the food is still being prepared, but she just can't get off the ground anymore." He paused and looked away. There was more that he wasn't telling me, that he didn't want to tell me.

"That's not all is it? Venn, what's wrong?" He was starting to really worry me. I was afraid of what he was going to say, but I still wanted to know.

"Yinyay detected our followers. They know where we are, where we landed. They'll be here in about two hours. The forest is nearly impassable, but if we don't try to make a run for it, they will catch us. We need to leave now." He looked at me cautiously, trying to determine how I was going to react.

I knew this was going to happen. I had been preparing myself for this. I surprised myself by being able to remain calm.

"Then I guess we should leave, then, shouldn't we? We'll be harder to trace if we have a good head start," I replied coolly.

He seemed to think that I was going to faint again and was utterly relieved when I didn't. I was pretty happy about that fact, too.

"It's a good thing that you don't having anything to take with you; it'll make the going a lot quicker. I need about five minutes to gather some supplies together, and then we'll get going." And without another word, he disappeared into the back rooms.

I was extremely grateful that he was out of the room. It gave me an opportunity to get a hold of myself. Even though I betrayed nothing of my true feelings to Venn, in truth, I was near hysterics. The darkness was threatening to overtake me again.  
_Calm down. Get a grip. There's a perfectly good chance that we'll escape. We'll make it out of here, we'll find the Hulta, and everything will be alright again._  
I refused to let the fear overwhelm me again. I was going to be strong. I was going to fight. For Argul.  
With a little bit of concentration, I managed to slow my racing heart down and return my breathing back to normal. I composed myself just in time too because a moment later Venn returned to the room carrying two rather heavy looking packs.

"I think we're all set. I put together a pack for you as well. It just has some essentials: tooth cleaning powder, two changes of clothes, knife, bedroll, and a water flask. I'll carry the food and cooking supplies."

I reached out to take the bag from him, and as I leaned closer, I saw a suspicious bulge in his pack. "What's that?" I said pointing to his pack.

"Oh, it's nothing," he said, not meeting my gaze.

"It's not 'nothing.' I know there's something in that bag, now tell me what it is!" I was probably overreacting, but I just couldn't handle him hiding things from me; I was just too vulnerable right then.

"Fine," he sighed. "It's a gun." He stared at me cautiously, worried that he would set me off again. I gave him a disapproving look in return. "It's just a precaution. We have no idea what's in these woods and we need to be prepared for anything we come across." I wasn't pleased and my expression made that quite clear. "I will only use it as a last resort. I promise." I still didn't like the idea of having a deadly weapon anywhere near me, but I couldn't deny that this forest could be dangerous and some protection would be welcome. I decided to drop it.

"Well, are we just going to stand here all day and or are going to leave?" I snapped at him.

"Alright, then. Let's head out."

I'm not exactly sure what I expected the journey to be like, but that certainly wasn't it. First of all, we were moving excruciatingly slowly. It took over two hours just to go half a mile. The vegetation was so thick that with every few feet came the necessity of hacking down a tree or a bush or even just really tall grass.  
It started to rain after the first hour of trekking. I could feel raindrops falling onto my neck, making cold rivulets run down my back, causing me to shiver. How any moisture managed to penetrate the thick canopy was beyond me, but soon enough the forest floor became a sea of mud that made walking nearly impossible; when our feet weren't sliding across the surface of the ground they were simply stuck ankle-deep into it.  
And, to top it all off, there were hordes and hordes of insects! Mosquito clouds that were so thick that I was practically breathing them in; I know I swallowed two or three. There were ants, beetles, and who knows what else crawling all over me! Currents of bugs were pulsing all over the ground and trees. At first, I tried to brush them off—tried to prevent them from getting onto me in the first place—but after a while, I got used to them. They were a constant nuisance that I had to accept; I just tried not to swallow or inhale any more.

After a few long, arduous hours, night fell, and suddenly the muddy, bug-filled morning didn't seem that bad anymore. I felt like I was blind. No light from the stars or the moon penetrated that canopy. If Venn hadn't reached back and taken my hand, I would have been lost in seconds.

He decided that it was no use trying to go any further, so he set up camp in the nearest clearing. Well, I don't think that it would actually qualify as a "clearing," but there was enough of a lack of vegetation that we had room to pitch the tent and light a fire.

He pulled out some tough bread and cheese and divided them between us. It wasn't much. The day's traveling had made me hungry and I was hoping for a little more sustenance; living the life of a slave, however, made me accustomed to going days with little to no food.

"I'm surprised how well you've kept up," said Venn. "We've gone twice as far as I had originally anticipated. Thank you for sticking it out." He gave me a genuine smile as he said this. For the first time, he seemed perfectly at ease around me. I felt as if I should respond, but I was scared that I would say the wrong thing and ruin the moment. I had to say something quickly. He was looking at me almost expectantly.

"Oh, it was nothing. I'm just as eager to get away from those people as you are." There. That didn't sound too bad.

"Yes, well. We're not out of the woods yet, so to speak. We have no idea where they are. Who knows? They could have been following us all this time." He winced after he said this, seeing the terrified look on my face. "But chances are they've given up trying to find us by now. I'm sure they've deemed it too much of a hassle searching this awful forest," he reassured me hastily.

And of course, that had to be the exact moment that we heard a noise coming from the depths of the forest. It was a sound that both of us recognized but one that chilled us to the bone nevertheless. It was the sound of human footsteps.

I was frozen with panic. I was sure that my wildly beating heart would give away our location. I watched Venn put out the fire, thinking that it was a futile act. My mind was already envisioning the horrors of what would happen when they found us. That was what made what happened next so unbearable.

Venn crawled over to me and whispered "Claidi, I'm going to go look around. I need to see if they're close. I'll only be gone for a few minutes. Okay?" He didn't wait for my response. He just stood up, pulled the gun from his bag, and crept carefully into the trees.

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**So there you have it. Chapter 7. I'm in the middle of Chapter 8, but I can't guarantee that it's going to come out any time soon. Anyway, I hope you like it. Please tell me if you have any ideas on where to go next, or if you have any comments on what I've down so far. Seriously, I'll even take flames. Just some critiquing would be nice.**

**Thanks for reading! **


	8. An Unexpected Discovery

**Huzzah!!! I have returned!!! I had actually kinda forgotten that I was writing this story until I got a comment today asking me to continue it. It turns out that I had actually finished this chapter, I just never got around to posting it. Sorry it took sooooo long, but you know how it is. **

**Enjoy!!**

**Oh, p.s. I do not own any of Tanith Lee's stuff, and blah blah blah you get the picture.**

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And that was it. He never came back. I sat there, barely able to keep myself from shrieking with the tension and fear that were singing through my body. Unbearable seconds stretched into painful minutes, which stretched into agonizing hours, which eventually became one tortuous night. It surprised me when I saw faint touches of sunlight streaming through the trees. Even though every moment was wrought with horrible apprehension, I had somehow lost track of time.

I was alone again. Despite our somewhat strained relationship, Venn had made me feel safe, filled some of the void in my life. Now I was on my own again.

It took me a while to get up and moving. I was still praying that he would appear. _"Sorry that took so long. I found them and I convinced them to leave us alone. They won't ever bother us again. Now let's go find your family."_ But that was just wishful thinking. I had to convince myself that he was gone and he was never coming back.

It nearly killed me to accept it, but I did. I buried the evidence of the fire, moved the essentials from Venn's bag to mine, and left. I didn't know what I was doing or where I was going, but I knew I had to leave.

I stopped thinking about Venn, stopped thinking about anything really. I retreated back into the numbness that was essential to my survival and sanity when I was adrift in the ocean. I didn't notice the bugs crawling on my skin anymore, didn't notice the numerous scrapes I incurred from the branches of the trees.

Would it ever stop? Would I ever get the chance to be happy? To be with the ones that I loved without the fear that it I could be ripped from them at any moment. What was the point of continuing this horrid existence?

It was at that point that I looked down at the machete in my hand. Suddenly, it looked very inviting. It was my only friend. It could be my angel of mercy. I drew my fingers lightly across the edge of the blade and it produced a thin line of blood. It was sharp. It would get the job done.

I knelt on the ground, the blade pointed at my chest. I would just let myself fall. Let it pierce my chest and end it all. I knew I couldn't go on anymore, not like that. I spoke to Argul one last time in my head, hoping with all my heart that he could somehow hear me. I told him I was sorry, sorry that everything went so wrong, sorry that I had to leave him, sorry that I had to say goodbye.

_I love you, Argul._ That was my last thought. I could feel the sharp point against my skin. It was almost through the skin. If I just leaned forward a little more it would all be over. It had just punctured the skin when I heard a noise. I quickly jerked up, momentarily forgetting that there was a razor-sharp blade inches away from my heart. This sound, too, seemed familiar, but it wasn't frightening as the footsteps were. It sounded like a child, a scared child or a child in pain.

I instantly forgot about my intention to kill myself mere seconds ago. I was possessed with a powerful and inexplicable need to find what was making that noise, to help it whatever it was.

It didn't take me long to find it, which led me to discover that it was, in fact, a child. A little girl about seven years old was huddled at the base of an enormous tree, snuggled between its roots. Her hazel eyes were wide with fear. She must have heard me coming and tried to hide. Her hair, which was a horrible mess of tangles, seemed to be a dark brown, but that could have been a result of the dirt that was ground into it.

I reached a hand out to her. "Shhh. It's alright. I'm not going to hurt you." She didn't look as if she believed me; she just tried to cram herself closer to the tree. I simply sat there, making soothing noises until she finally seemed to relax and stopped trying to merge with the tree. "What's your name?" No response. "Can you understand me?" A small nod. "My name is Claidi. I'm here with my friend Venn." No need to tell the child that my friend Venn was abducted and probably killed by evil men following me. "Are you here all alone? Where are your parents? Did you get lost from them?" Still no verbal response. "Are you hungry? Or thirsty?" I reached into my pack and pulled out the water flask and some hard traveling bread. I could see her longing for them, and after a wary look between me and the food, she snatched it from my hand. The biscuit was gone in seconds and she emptied the flask just as quickly. I was amazed that she didn't choke. "There. That's a bit better now isn't it?" She didn't look so pathetic now that she'd eaten something.

After she had finished, she looked me right in the eyes. There were a few seconds of this stare-down and then, without warning, she jumped into my lap. She attached herself to my chest and started sobbing into my shoulder. I was so shocked. I didn't no what to do, but after a while when she didn't seem like she was going to stop any time soon, I began to rub small circles into her back and make shushing sounds.

"Shhhh. Shh. It's alright. You're going to be okay. I'm not going to let anything bad happen to you. You're safe now." As I said this there was a corner of my mind that was refuting this. _You can barely keep yourself alive. What makes you think you can protect a little girl? You're all alone. You have no clue where you are or where you're going. You are one of the least qualified people to look after her._ But I'm all she has. I have to be better than nothing, right?

After a while, she stopped crying. It was probably a lack of tears rather than a feeling of comfort that caused her to cease. "Can you at least tell me your name? Can you tell me that much?"

"Mira. My name is Mira," she said shakily.

"Is there anyone here with you? Did you get lost?" I didn't want to make her start crying again but I needed information. She looked like she had nothing left though. I didn't think she could cry if she wanted to. She had a heart-breaking look on her face. It was a look I recognized. A look of defeat. Of knowing that something you love is gone and it's never coming back.

"We were running. They didn't say why. They just said to keep moving. I was scared. I fell down a lot and got hurt, but they still made me run. Daddy was yelling. Mommy was crying. She was holding my baby brother. He was too quiet though. Normally he wouldn't shut up. He used to keep me awake all night. And then men were coming out of the trees. They had guns and were trying to take us. One of them grabbed my arm, but I bit his hand and he let go. And then I just ran. I didn't know where I was going. I couldn't even see. After a while, though, it got dark and I couldn't go any farther. It was quiet all around. I couldn't hear my mom or my dad, or even those evil men. There was nothing." And that was all she would say. I didn't know how to respond. I didn't have the heart to tell her that her parents were almost positively dead, along with her little brother. Instead, I did the only thing I could—I lied.

"I'm sure your parents are alright. They're probably at the nearest village just waiting for you. I'll bet you're tired, though. How about we make camp so that you can sleep and then we can go find a town. Does that sound okay?"

For one brief second her eyes burned with hope, hope that she might regain the life and the love that she lost. My heart was wracked with pity and guilt. Guilt from the lie that I told to her and pity that she actually believed it. Still, she nodded and I immediately started preparing the camp. While I was busying myself with the bedrolls I asked her without any real hope of a response, "You wouldn't happen to know where the nearest town is, do you?" I was shocked when a few seconds later, I heard her quiet answer.

"Well, I don't really know. I heard my parents talking about a place though. I think it was the place that we were running to. They said that we would be safe if we could just get there. My dad was friends with the leader or something. The problem was that we didn't know where it was exactly. He said something about it moving and that he hoped we would get there before the storms drove them away. It started with an H, but I can't remember the whole name."

I was frozen in the middle of unrolling a bedroll. Could it be? Was there even the slightest chance that the mysterious moving village that started with an H could really be my beloved Hulta? _It's entirely possible. They go everywhere. They could be looking for me. It's not that hard to believe that they just happen to be next to the same forest that I was in, that I ran into a little girl that was looking for them also. It's not that much of a stretch, is it? _I wanted to believe it so badly, to think that maybe my Argul was only a few miles away. But the logical part of my brain forced me to see reason, to not allow myself to hope. I couldn't let myself be hurt that badly again all because of hope.

I finished with the camp, all the while trying to beat down the hope that was doing its best to emerge. I succeeded more than I thought I would. I got to the point where I wasn't imagining my return to the Hulta, but rather planning an entry into an unfamiliar and possibly hostile village. In the end, though, I resigned myself to the fact that I couldn't predict what was going to happen and decided to go to sleep and not think about it again.

I directed Mira over to the bedroll, and she immediately curled up and went to sleep. She had looked exhausted all the while I was preparing the camp and it was nice that she was finally able to relax. Once she was settled, I put out the fire, curled up in the second bedroll, and fell into an uneasy sleep beside her.

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**There you go. An interesting twist, don't you think? Where I'm going to go with it now, I have no idea. If you have any ideas as to what I should do next, or if you have any thoughts in genreal, I would be very happy to hear them. **

**Hope you liked it!**

**Please review!!!**


	9. Author's Note

Hey guys. This is just a little author's note type thing.

1.) I went back and read my story again, and I found a lot of horrible grammar and spelling mistakes. I just wanted to apologize for those and to let you know that I corrected them…whether those corrections showed up in the posted version I have no idea. I hope they did because they were just awful.

2.) At the request of one of my reviewers, I'm going to give you a little background info just in case you haven't read the books or have forgotten some things. Now, I don't want to have to reread the book just to do this so I'm just going to give you some key points and hope that I'm remembering the story correctly.

The main character, Claidi, was a slave in this place called the House. The house was in the middle of this place called The Waste, which was a barren wasteland. One day, the guards of the house shot down a hot-air balloon with a guy named Nemian inside. Claidi rescues him from the dungeon and they both escaped into the Waste. He is a prince from a place called the City and is going to take Claidi back with him. On the way there, they run into some trouble with a tribe of people who want to sacrifice them. They are rescued by people whom they originally thought were bandits; in reality they're just a big group of families that travels around called the Hulta. The leader of the Hulta is a guy named Argul who falls in love with Claidi and wants her to stay with them. Claidi, however, has a crush on Nemian and wants to follow him to the city. She does have some feelings for Argul, but doesn't want to abandon Nemian because he told her that he needed her. So, Nemian and Claidi go to the City which is made up of four towers (ruling families). The Wolf Tower is the supreme leader of the City and is the family to which Nemian belongs. The Wolf Tower became the leader after a war between all the towers. To keep them from fighting again they created the Law. There were dice that were "rolled" four times a day (I think it was four times). Depending on how the dice landed, some person would have to do something that was written in two books. This fear of being randomly chosen to do something awful helped keep the city in check. Claidi was brought to the city as the person that had to interpret the dice and hand out the Law. Instead, she burned the books and the dice and fled the City with Argul, who had come to rescue her. That was the end of the first book. My story takes place shortly after the beginning of the second book.

In the second book, Claidi is preparing for her marriage to Argul, whom she loves dearly. However, she is captured by people we assume are from the Wolf Tower and put on a boat. Now, in Tanith Lee's version, she doesn't jump off the boat and is taken to a place called the Rise, where a Prince named Venn lives. I stayed pretty true to his character in that he hates human contact. In the end, he helps her escape from the Rise, but doesn't want her to go because he has fallen in love with her. In my version, Claidi jumps off the boat and never reaches the Rise. The ship that Venn rescues Claidi in is the same ship that Claidi uses to escape the Rise in Tanith Lee's book.

So, to answer the reviewer's questions

1.) Yes, Claidi has a crush on Argul because _he_ is her fiancée.

2.) The Wolf Tower was the evil family controlling the City with its cruel, random Law.

3.) Claidi was captured on her and Argul's wedding day by people from the Wolf Tower.

4.) And as for Venn falling in love with Claidi…honestly…he falls in love with Claidi in Tanith Lee's book and I didn't want to change that. I just kind of chalk it up to "love at first sight." Plus, she's the first real person he's ever seen, aside from his mother who left him when he was two years old, so he just gets really attached to her.


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